Is New York’s Bike-Share Plan A Game-Changer? [Headlines]

New York City is at the tipping point of becoming one of the world’s great bicycling cities. Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan and the New York City Department of Transportation (DoT) have done a tremendous job creating a more bicycle-friendly New York. According to the DoT, commuter cycling increased by 13% between 2009 and 2010. In the last five years, bicycle ridership has doubled. Since 2009, the city has added more than 200 miles of bike lanes. As president and CEO of Bike New York, I applaud and support DoT’s ambitious goal of having 1,800 miles of bikelanes on the streets, in parks and along paths, by 2030.

With the announcement Tuesday that Alta Bicycle Share has been selected as the company to bring bike sharing to New York City, the landscape of the Big Apple is going to change even more. Next summer, 10,000 bike share bicycles will be all over the city at 600 stations, creating the biggest bike share program in the nation. In cities all across the world, it has been proven to be a successful and popular transportation option – checking out a bike at one station and riding it to another station close to your destination. It’ll alleviate congestion and crowds on the streets, buses and subways. It’s an easy and accessible way to fight obesity and pollution. You don’t have to worry about your bike getting stolen. You don’t have to worry about maintenance. You don’t have to worry about storing it in your small New York apartment. Guardian